AIR TRANSPORT
Japanese airlines finalise low-cost plans
PAUL LEWIS/SINGAPORE
JAPAN AIR SYSTEM (JAS) and Japan Airlines QAL) are plan ning to incorporate new low-cost
subsidiary carriers shortly, in the
face of growing domestic liberali
sation and die entry of new com
peting start-up airlines.
JAS also announced that its new
subsidiary operation, Harlequin
Air, was to have been established on
20 January. The airline will have a
capitalisation of ¥480 million
($4.15 million) and begin interna
tional charter operations in
December, followed by scheduled
domestic services in January 1997.
Harlequin will initially be
equipped with a single McDonnell
Douglas (MDC) DC-10-30 and
operate up to 100 charter flights a
year between 38secondary airports
in Japan and South-East Asia and
Australia. Tourist destinations will
include Bangkok, Brisbane,
Manila, Singapore and Sydney.
The domestic operation will use
MDC MD-8 Is leased from JAS to
operate 15 daily flights from
Fukuoka, in southern Japan, to six
or seven secondary cities, including
Kagoshima, Matsuyama, Miyazaki
and Sapporo. The airline hopes to
cut costs by 10-15% by supple
menting JAS crew with locally
recruited attendants from Fukuoka
and foreign pilots.
JAL, in the meantime, plans to
incorporate its own domestic sub
sidiary carrier in March. The yet-
to-be named airline will have a
capitalisation of ¥400 million and
begin operating in the spring of
1998, equipped initially with three
Boeing 737s.
The airline's fleet could grow to
15-20 aircraft by 2005-10 and
include widebody Boeing 767s,
says JAL. Maintenance will be per
formed by JAL and its 51 %-owned
Okinawa-based subsidiary, Japan
Transocean Airlines. It will operate
on JAL's low-demand regional
routes on a wet-lease basis, as well
as develop its own network. Actual
routes will depend on future air
fares and the allocation of new slots
at Tokyo's Haneda Airport.
Like Harlequin, JAL plans to
employ lower-cost contract cabin
crew and foreign pilots to achieve
savings of up to 20%. "We have to
learn how to deal with domestic
deregulation, increased competi
tion and lower prices and more
benefits to the consumer," notes
JAL president Akira Kondo. •
NTSB reveals Comair
Brasilia crash dues
STARBOARD ENGINE over-speed appears to have been the
triggering factor for the 9 January
Comair Embraer EMB-120
Brasilia (N265CA) crash in which
all 26 passengers and three crew
died, according to US National
Transportation Safety Board
(NTSB) investigators.
The twin-turboprop, which was
operating a Delta Connection
flight to Detroit-Metropolitan air
port from Cincinnati, Ohio, seems
to have stalled and gone out of con
trol while level at 4,000ft (1,200m).
This occurred while it was execut
ing a left turn during its approach
in snowy weather.
The NTSB says that there are
indications that the crew tried to
shut down the starboard engine
and operate the fire-extinguishing
system, but that there are no signs
so far either of an engine fire or of
propeller-blade failure.
According to the flight-data
recorder (FDR), 38s before impact
the aircraft continued a left turn
when the autopilot was command
ing a right turn. After autopilot dis
connect, the FDR indicates, the
stick-shaker stall-warning activat
ed, and within 5 s the aircraft had
stalled, pitched 50° nose-down and
rolled 40° left. The time from the
beginning of the sequence to
impact was less than 40s. The
NTSB says that crew exchanges on
the cockpit-voice recorder have
not yielded any clues. J
Perm Airlines introduces Tu-204-100
PERM AIRLINES (PAL) has introduced a single PS-90-pow-
ered Tupolev Tu-204-100 (RA-64017) which is being operated
by Vnukovo Airlines, primarily on charters from Moscow to
Tenerife, Canary Islands. It is understood that PAL's Tu-204 is
leased from the engine maker Aviadvigatel/Perm Motors, which
acquired the aircraft from the manufacturer Aviastar in
exchange for PS-90 engines (Flight International, 18-31
December ,1996).
ASA may increase CRJ commitment
ATLANTIC SOUTHEAST Airlines (ASA) cites the even
tual availability of a 70-seat deriva
tive as one reason for selecting the
Canadair Regional Jet (CRJ) to
meet its 50-seat requirements, and
Bombardier is hopeful that the air
line will add to the existing 90-air-
craft commitment.
The Delta Connection carrier
will place firm orders for 30 CRJs
and take options on a further 60
(Flight International 15-21 Janu
ary). While some of the later
options could be converted to the
70-seat CRJ-X which is available
from 2000, the airline intends that
all 90 aircraft will be taken as the
50-seat version. Bombardier is
therefore hopeful that any pur
chases for 70-seat aircraft will
mean additional orders.
ASAs selection of the CRJ fol
lowed a "very close" competition
with the Embraer EMB-145.
Bombardier says it was "extremely
competitive" on cost of ownership
versus the cheaper EMB-145. •
NEWS IN BRIEF
• VALUJET DISPOSES
Valujet has sold three addi
tional surplus aircraft,
including its last remaining
McDonnell Douglas MD-83,
as part of a US Federal
Aviation Administration
order to reduce its fleet. The
airline has also pre-paid the
debt on a fourth aircraft,
which it will sell.
• S-C ADDS FREIGHTERS
S-C Aviation Holdings has
purchased two Airbus
A300B4s from Air France
subsidiary Air Charter for
conversion to freighters by
British Aerospace, under a
programme headed by S-C
Aviation Services.
• ATLAS BUYS PAL 747-200
US all-cargo carrier Atlas Air
has purchased a General
Electric CF6-powered Boe
ing 747-200B, now operated
by Philippine Airlines on
lease. The aircaft will be con
verted into freighter config
uration.
• EMBRAER'S EXPRESSJET
Continental Express' new
50-seat Embraer EMB-145s
will initiate "Expressjet" ser
vices from Cleveland on 1
March to Greensboro,
Hartford, Milwaukee, St
Louis and Minneapolis.
FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 22 - 28 January 1997 11